North Dakota Lawmaker Nico Rios Will Not Seek Reelection

(Mary Steurer/North Dakota Monitor)

(North Dakota Monitor) – A Williston state lawmaker said he will not seek reelection this year.

Rep. Nico Rios, a Republican, told the North Dakota Monitor he will not seek his party’s endorsement during the NDGOP District 23 convention. He said he plans to focus on his career and personal life when his term expires at the end of the year.

“I’m real busy at work, and it’s cost me a lot of time away from my personal life for the last four years,” Rios said.

In 2023, Rios was arrested for drunken driving and was captured on an officer’s body camera berating a police officer using homophobic and racist language. The video also showed Rios attempting to use his position to intimidate law enforcement. Republican legislative leadership and the North Dakota Republican Party called on Rios to resign after the incident, which he did not do